The Film and Media Arts class collaborated with Mr. Macaluso to interview Paul Montes, a producer for Dr. Dre’s studio “Aftermath Entertainment” on January 26.  “Mr. Montes is an expert in music. Before working in Aftermath Entertainment, he worked in Interscope Records, he also has his own startup company “Hitmaker Records,” Macaluso said. 

Paul Montes is head of the studio manager at Aftermath Entertainment. “Part of my job daily is always to make sure the audio sounds good and to be on standby so when Dr. Dre comes to record music, everything would play smoothly,” Montes said. 

While Montes worked in Aftermath, he met many A-list artists that are part of Aftermath Entertainment. “ I was working at Aftermath Entertainment when Kendrick Lamar came to record good kid, MAAD City,” Montes said. He also met artists like Lady Gaga and Eminem. 

Paul Montes always liked playing with audio, even before wanting to pursue it as a career. “Back when I played basketball, I would piece the mixtape we would listen to during practice,” Montes said. 

Montes recalls how, when he first started working at Aftermath Entertainment, he was a runner, someone who would run errands for others. Over time he started taking on a more Leadership role. “Leadership is something I learn each day,” Montes says. 

Dr. Macaluso teaches 7th-grade general music, HS guitar, and keyboard. He was able to contact Paul Montes through a 7th grader who is related to Mr. Montes. “Here at MACES, we value tech and careers so having an expert in tech to come and talk is really helpful,” Macaluso said. 

Dr. Macaluso has been communicating with Mr. Montes since November 2022. “November is a really hectic month, but all it took was a few emails before we were able to plan a date,” Macaluso said. He is proud of how it turned out. “We had an almost full stadium.”